DOWN HIGH U13S 52 DROMORE HIGH U13S 0

Report by Zac Ward

On Monday afternoon Dromore high school UI3’s travelled to Down High school to play the U13’s at the Mount Crescent venue. The match kicked off in what could be described as very blustery afternoon. Lewis Canning claimed the kick off and good work by the forwards saw the ball spun to Jonny McCoubery who showed amazing pace to out gas the opposition to score the opening try. The strong wind meant Paddy Browne was unable to convert and the score remained 5-0. Dromore awoke from their slumber and played with excellent intensity for the middle part of the half. However with five minutes left to play in the first half Lewis Canning rumbled over for the second try of the game which was then converted by Paddy Browne. This left the half time score 12-0.

The second half started with Ward showing his power to drive over the line to score, which was once again converted by Paddy Browne. Dromore came back fighting strong but they were no match for the sheer pace of William Annett who was tackled on the 5 metre line but managed to give a Sonny Bill Williams offload to Marcus Graham who just had to fall over the line. Paddy Browne put over a superb conversion from the touchline. Shortly after Zac Ward was on the scoresheet again when Terry Hutley tossed the ball out to Paddy Browne who then fed the powerful flanker to score a try which Browne again converted. From the restart Jonny McCoubery weaved his magic through the Dromore defence to get his second try. Unfortunately Browne missed the conversion but the score was now 38-0 to the boys in green. With 5 minutes of the match to go Marcus Graham showed everyone his speed and strength to shimmy his way past the defence and break out of several tackles to score under the post to leave Browne an easy conversion. Dromore then had their best moment of the game but just when it seemed their flanker was about to score a great tackle caused him to drop the ball over the line and Eoin Moag cleared the danger. The last play of the match saw Zac Ward show his strength to bounce past the Dromore defence to score in the corner which bagged him a third try of the game; Browne again converted a difficult kick.

The Down boys deserve credit for fronting up in a physical battle and they continue to improve in all facets of the game.

Man of the Match: Zac Ward

Killicomaine Junior High School U13s 0 – Down High School Under 13s 52

By Paddy Browne

On Saturday Down High Under 13 A's travelled to Killicomaine Junior High hoping to add another win to their increasing tally.

The first score came from a 'crash ball move' executed perfectly with powerful running by Zac Ward; Paddy Browne converted. Ward was soon on the score sheet again with an intercept try which Browne converted. Try number three began with a five-metre scrum from which Terry Hutley received quick ball and proceeded to dance his way around the Killicomaine back row to score a fine try. Paddy Browne was unable to convert this time. Shortly afterwards Rory Horder unfortunately had to leave the field with an injury, but was replaced by Michael Harper. Further tries were scored by Angus Ferris, Marcus Graham and Jonny McCoubrey - all showing great pace; Browne added the extras on each occasion.

The second half started with a period of Killicomaine pressure which was dealt with by the ever-abrasive back-row trio of Porter, Canning and Ward. However Down High were quick to cross the line again with tries by Paddy Browne, Adam Brown and Clayton Milligan; Browne converted all three.

Credit must be given to the Down High 'pack' who week-in and week-out work tirelessly to produce quick ball for the backs. This was another satisfying result for the Under 13 boys who returned to County Down in great spirits.

Man of the match: Paddy Browne.

Regent U13A - 0  Down High U13A – 36. 

Report by Marcus Graham

On a bright and crisp November morning the Down High boys travelled to the fortress of Comber Road under the shadow of Scrabo Tower to do battle against a strong Regent team. Despite the wet ground and long grass some great rugby was played with Down High U13As returning home to Mount Crescent victorious again with another resounding win.

Regent won the toss and chose to kick off.  The Down High pack caught and drove forward and provided good clean ball for scrum-half Terry Hutley to release the backs. This strong link between the forwards and the backs became the solid base of the Down High game plan.

After five minutes with Terry getting continuous quick ball to the backs, Jonny McCoubrey made a trademark run through the centre, running through the Regent defence to score Down High’s first try in the corner. Up stepped Paddy Browne for what was his most difficult kick of the match, and kicked the conversion beautifully through the posts.  Down High were up and running.

After a superb passage of play by the Down High boys, with the ball being passed cleanly through the hands of the backs, the forwards dominated the resulting maul and the ball was again moved out to the backs, this time reaching Marcus Graham who outran the opposition to score in the corner. 

It was obvious the Regent team were not going to take this lying down and began to get stuck into the Down High boys.  Tempers began to flare in a number of off-the-ball incidents, but the referee calmly took control and both teams got back to playing rugby.  Sam Rickard, Lewis Canning and Zac Ward drove through the Regent boys from the front, setting up attack after attack, and soon the ball reached Angus Ferris who raced to score Down High’s third try before the half-time whistle was blown.

Regent came out fighting in the second half and the Down High defence was tested time and again, but each time stood firm. The notable defence tackling by Marcus Graham resulted in his Man of the Match award.  Further tries from Jonny McCoubrey and Angus Ferris, and a couple of conversions  took the game beyond the reach of Regent. One of the last passages of play was a chip through by Paddy, chased by William Annett, who despite being tackled was able to pop the ball up to Paddy for him to get over the line for Down High’s final try.

Thanks to Aaron Cairns and Andy Ward for their touchline coaching throughout the game, and to the parents who travelled to Newtownards to shout for DHS!

Man of the Match: Marcus Graham

The Under 13B’s completed a fine morning for the Year 9 boys with a convincing win over their Regent counterparts. There was a hat trick of tries from man of the match Christy McGuire along with braces by Michael McDowell, Stuart Burns, Jack Gibson, Alistair Ross and Harry Hitchens and a solo effort from Mark Herron.

A SPECIAL THANKS TO ALL THOSE PARENTS WHO TRANSPORTED BOYS TO NEWTONARDS ON SATURDAY

Down High U13 39 - 12 High School Ballynahinch U13/U14

The Down High men left school early on Monday this week to play  against Ballynahinch High; a school known for their hardness and this team definitely showed it.

From Down High’s previous match on Saturday against Wellington where they dominated throughout, the boys weren’t prepared for the blast that Ballynahinch had in store. The game kicked off and before long Down High were making mistakes including their decision making and as a result Ballynahinch took their chance and scored the opening try. After a motivating talk from their coach, Down High were ready to strike back, and soon after the boys scored a try in the corner when Jonny McCoubrey powered over the line. Paddy Browne, who had had a near flawless day of kicking last Saturday, struggled to get the ball through the posts. A few phases of play from the restart saw Jonny score another unconverted try. Down High kept the pressure on Ballynahinch and were soon rewarded with another try scored by Matthew Porter in the corner. This was more like the Down High we saw at Friends. Still Paddy was finding it hard to get his boot through the ball and narrowly missing the extra two points. Ballynahinch strengthened their team using a couple of U14 resources. By now the game was becoming extremely physical, but the Down boys maintained their scoring pattern and McCoubrey complted his hat trick to leave the half time score 20-7.

In the second half Harry Hitchens moved into outside centre and Adam Brown took the position of full-back. Rory Horder also came on for Michael Harper after missing the Wellington match from a chest injury. However, Down allowed Ballynahinch to take a quick penalty and one of their speedy forwards dived across the Down High line for the second time in the game.  The Down boys realised their mistake and after some great play from the Down High pack Clayton Milligan broke through two or three tackles and dived over the line underneath the posts. Paddy Browne capitalized on this and gave Down High the extra two points. Soon after Jonny McCoubrey got his fourth try by using his speed to break down the left wing and touch the ball down under the posts. The game came to an end with Jonny McCoubrey scoring his fifth and final try before Paddy converting the last kick of the game and giving them a convincing victory of 39-12.

Man of the match: Jonny McCoubrey

By Paddy Browne

On a perfect November morning the U13 Down High rugby team journeyed to Wellington College, full of determination and relishing the impending encounter. A few hours later they returned, triumphant after a 52-0 win at the Carolan Road pitches which included eight tries from eight different players.

From kick-off the forwards secured quick ball for the backs and within the first three minutes William Annett ran from forty metres out to score the first try. It was an easy conversion for Paddy Browne. Shortly afterwards a simple 'two-on-one' allowed Johnny McCoubrey to speed in for the second try, Browne converted again.

The Wellington team fought back and started to creep into Down High's half but strong tackling from Michael Harper and Matthew Porter secured ball once more for the boys in green.

A few minutes later Zac Ward received the ball on the twenty-two metre line and ran in for another try which Browne again converted. The Down High boys continued to exert huge pressure on the Wellington side which resulted in two exciting tries by wingers Angus Ferris and Marcus Graham; both boys displayed pace and agility before sliding in to add to the scoreboard.

The Wellington boys showed great character by manfully sticking to their game-plan in the second half and a good amount of play took place in Down High's half of the pitch. Despite this, the Down High team were able to work their way back into a scoring position and three more tries gave Down High an unreachable lead. Firstly Hugo Finlay showed great strength, grinding over the line to score from close range. Browne hit the post with the resulting conversion. Shortly after Clayton Milligan drove-over to plant the ball under the posts; this try was safely converted by Marcus Graham. Finally, in the last play of the game, Jack Gibson made a good run from the twenty-two metre line to score the final try, Marcus was unsuccessful in converting this time.

A sound victory and a clinical performance from the boys - the sun shone even more brightly on the journey home.

Man of the Match: Paddy Browne

FRIENDS U13 Bs 5 – 36 DOWN HIGH U13Bs

Down High Under 13 B team travelled to Friends School Lisburn on Saturday for their first match of the season and returned triumphant.

Down had some trouble with their starting XV as Christy McGuire felt sick before the match although they still continued to have high spirits after an inspiring talk from Mr McKillen. The B’s match kicked off with Down High receiving however Friends managed to gain possession of the ball through a few phases of rucking. They got right up to Down’s five-metre line but  Down managed to hold up the ball carrier and win the ball to clear their line.

Around five-ten minutes into the game, Thomas McGarry made a break right through their line of defence. He got to about the 22 metre line and was stopped short. The forwards did very well to get to the ruck before the opposition could steal the ball. After a few short phases, we were beginning to approach the five metre. The forwards secured the ball once more and the scrum half passed it out.  Andrew McCullough received the ball from Adam Brown and ran around their opposition to get the try.

Five minutes before halftime, Down were quite relaxed as they had already had most of the possession in the game. Good play from the backs led to breaks down the wing, but none of them were able to get past the opposing defence.  However after a great lineout from Down High, Euan Brown used his strength to power over the line for another try before half time.

The second half started as the first half ended with Down on the front foot. Adam Brown got the ball from the maul and ran a great run down the blindside to score an try in the corner. This try was followed by a debut try for Jordan Haslett, for which he ran past every single one of their backs.

After the restart from Jordan’s try, some great play from the backs, especially Harry Hitchens for gaining lots of ground brought them well up the pitch after a run from Jack Gibson. The forwards rucked well and got closer to their try line and a great carry from Michael McDowell led him over the line for a fifth try for the Down High boys.

Only five minutes were left of the second half and the opposition were kicking into us. Adam Brown caught the ball with a clean catch and passed to Andrew McCullough, who ran a short distance before passing to Jack Gibson on the 22. Jack managed to sprint past the fullback before swerving in to score right under the posts as Adam Brown was shouting so it would be easier to convert.

From  the restart, Friends school managed to win the ball from the ruck. Our defensive back line was not organised which led to one of the opposition centres scoring a non-converted try to end the match.

Great performance from both the forwards and the backs, with the forwards and their great rucking and the backs with their handling and speed! Adam Brown was deservedly elected man of the match. Thanks goes to Mr McKillen for some great team talks.

Man of the match: Adam Brown

Match report by Jack Gibson

Down High U13 A’s 19     Friends U13 A’s 0

Down High U13’s made the journey to Lisburn on Saturday to face a very strong Friends side.

The match kicked off with early dominance by the Down high boys. Our pack were clearing out every ruck to give Terry easy ball at the breakdown. This early dominance soon paid off, as quick hands from the backs saw Marcus Graham dive in at the corner. It was a very tough kick for Paddy, but his after-school practising has really paid off as he stuck it right between the posts.

After the kick off, the ball was moved out the wing were Angus Ferris’s speed took him up to the 22. The ball was transferred out the line for Jonny McCoubrey to score. Just before halftime Zac Ward was using his powerful handoff to good use as he gained some valuable ground, but the ball was knocked on.

After a great first half from Nathan Rogerson, making some great tackles and rucking well, we brought on our secret weapon Clayton Milligan.

The Friends kick off bounced out of play but the Down High line out was stolen. Friends transferred the ball out the wing were William Annett made a great tackle. Zac Ward and Matthew Porter were on hand to steal the ball and get possession back in Down High’s favour. Terry gave the ball to Jonny McCoubrey who kicked into space. A great chase from Terry Hutley and Matthew Dougherty forced their fullback to kick the ball out.

Friends stole the lineout and kicked the ball down field. William Annett caught the ball and ran it up field. The forwards won the ruck and a great 2 on 1 with Matthew Dougherty and Jonny McCoubrey saw Jonny score again under the posts. Paddy converted to make the final score 19-0.

Man of the match: Matthew Porter

Report by: Matthew Porter